


Sebastian - Noble

by TheBearMuse



Series: Allison Hawke [1]
Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-28
Updated: 2013-09-28
Packaged: 2017-12-27 14:27:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/979987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBearMuse/pseuds/TheBearMuse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sebastian Vael accepts an invitation to Allison Hawke's dinner party, but finds far more than he bargained for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sebastian - Noble

**Author's Note:**

> Part of my two word prompt series of drabbles.

Sebastian Vael gripped his invitation more tightly as a brisk wind blew through Hightown. He was surprised that the reclusive Allison Hawke was holding a dinner party. Though a charming conversationalist, she was not one to take center stage at the grand galas of the Kirkwall nobility. She much preferred lingering by the side of the only person she knew outside these necessary evils, murmuring off-color remarks to him under her breath as he tried to hide his embarrassment - and amusement, Sebastian admitted. Even if he had not wanted to go, he would never turn down the opportunity to meet with the woman who had helped him avenge his family's deaths.

The exiled prince paused outside the Hawke estate. The front door stood ajar and unattended. That was strange. Sebastian was glad he had brought his bow with him for protection against any unsavory thugs. Even Hightown was not safe at night and that knowledge only made him more uneasy. He kept a hand on an arrow as he cautiously entered the darkened entryway.

The fire in the foyer had burned low, its dull red embers casting just enough light to see by. There was no sign of the dwarves who worked for Hawke. That too was odd. Bodahn and Sandal would never leave their post with guests on the way. Sebastian's shadow crept across the wall as he made his way further into the mansion. Even Noodle, Allison's mabari, was absent. The former brother was not one to be skittish, but something about this situation made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Something was very wrong.

He debated calling out to Hawke, but decided not to, as that would alert any intruders as well. Sebastian carefully made his way up the stairs to the second floor in the near darkness. A faint glow came from the room nearer the windows. He notched an arrow and taking a deep breath, slipped into the room.

A single candle lit Hawke's bedroom and Sebastian's eyes narrowed as they focused on the person rummaging haphazardly through Allison's things. A small statue Hawke had brought out of the Deep Roads lay broken on the ground. That was all he needed to see. "Turn around slowly and tell me what you've done with Hawke," he ordered the thief.

"Oh, Sebastian, you're here! Thank the Maker." The figure spun around to face him. Sebastian frowned in confusion. It was Hawke. A layer of dust clung to her robe and she was clearly agitated, but otherwise, she appeared to be fine. "I need your help," Allison told him, her dark blue eyes filled with unspoken apologies. "The key to my chest from Lothering is missing. Could you please pick the lock? I need a particular dress for tonight and it's in there."

He raised his eyebrows at her. "So you're _not_ being robbed?" The puzzled look that answered him spoke volumes. "The door was open and no one is here except you."

"Bodahn and Sandal took Noodle for a walk. Sandal must not have closed the door all the way. Mother's out with her mystery suitor and I gave Orana the night off." Allison looked stricken. "Oh Sebastian, I'm so sorry!"

He smiled reassuringly at her. "I'm just glad you're all right, Lady Hawke." She blushed the way she always did when he called her that. Even after three years, she was still unused to the trappings of nobility. Sebastian leaned his bow against the wall before slipping a lockpick from behind his Andraste belt buckle and setting to work on the lock. It was a bit rusted from disuse, but otherwise did not look like much of a challenge. Allison watched him intently, anxiously fiddling with the sash of her robe. "It's a good thing I arrived before your other guests."

Allison turned away, nervously toying with the ponytail her hair was swept back into. "Actually, you're all of them," she admitted. "I only wanted the two good parts of noble social functions, the food and you, so here we are!" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her steal a glance at him before quickly adding, "I suppose in the absence of the de Launcets, someone had to do something mortifyingly horrible to serve as the subject of politely awkward dinner conversation."

Sebastian chuckled. "There's very little about the de Launcets that would pass for polite."

"A fair point!" Allison laughed. "The way Babette and Fifi behave, you'd think they were the ones who recently rose to nobility." She shook her head. "I will never understand the spectacle they make of themselves. The entire goal of these parties is to _not_ get caught talking poorly about others, but they do it openly - and loudly! And the way they talk to the servants...." She trailed off. Sebastian looked up from the lock to see Allison pinching her nose closed, blood slowly trickling between her fingers. Their eyes met briefly. "This is not my night," she muttered, looking away and fumbling in the leather pouch at her hip for a handkerchief with her free hand.

Allison was prone to nosebleeds, he had learned when they had taken care of the Harrimanns. Though Hawke had not been touched by their opponents, she had been covered in blood. That shocked Sebastian, but not nearly as much as the sight of her using that blood to power her spells against their enemies. When he later asked her why she used blood magic, she shrugged and told him that magic was the quickest way for her to get rid of the blood. Allison refused to say more than that and Sebastian had dropped the subject, though he had continued to worry in private about her status as a maleficarum. However, seeing her struggling to contain the blood without using magic dispelled his fear that she was too dependent on it.

Abandoning the lock, Sebastian moved to help Allison, who was trying to prevent him from seeing her plight by turning away from him. She tensed slightly at his steadying hand on her shoulder, but allowed him to slide his hand into the pouch so he could retrieve the handkerchief. His hand pressed against hers as he felt for the folds of the cloth between her fingers. Sebastian squeezed them reassuringly and felt her relax. He was surprised by how neatly she fit against him. Pushing that thought aside, he gently untangled the handkerchief from the dagger Hawke always carried "just in case" and slid it from her pouch. She took it from him, their fingers lightly brushing against each other. With a grateful look and muffled thanks, Allison fled from the room. "I'll return shortly!" she called back faintly.

Sebastian stood there for a moment, staring absently at the door. _Things are never dull with you around, are they, Allison?_ He returned to working on the lock. He considered following her downstairs to help if she needed it, but had gotten the impression that the best thing he could do now was leave her alone and finish getting her trunk open. _At least then she'll have something to change into if needed._ "Maker's breath!" Sebastian cursed as his lockpick slipped, causing his hand to hit the chest painfully. He frowned as he rubbed at the sore spot. What was wrong with him? He had almost had it that time. Steadying himself, he tried again and was rewarded with the click of the lock opening. Sebastian raised the lid of the chest to make sure its contents were undamaged. Aside from the faint scent of mustiness and something else that he could not quite place, they seemed fine. He was about to close the trunk when the dress on the top of the pile gave him pause. It was made of a velvet that matched Allison's eyes and appeared to have seen little use. Though simple when compared with the elaborate finery worn in Starkhaven or even Kirkwall, it would have certainly been considered fancy in Lothering. This was no doubt the dress she was looking for.

As he laid the dress out on the bed, Sebastian could not help but notice that the neckline, while still modest, was lower cut than what Allison normally wore. The implications of the choice made him blush and mentally recite several lines of the Chant of Light. As he did so, he saw that the lowest part of the V was slightly raised. Concerned that he had damaged the dress after all, Sebastian flipped over the uneven section of cloth. A small pocket made of a different fabric was crudely sewn to the inside of the dress. Inside it was a handkerchief folded as small as it could be while still remaining flat. A frown creased Sebastian's brow as he returned the embroidered cloth to its hiding place. Now he understood why Allison had been so desperate to wear this particular dress. Her resourcefulness was impressive, though he did wonder why her dresses from Kirkwall lacked this hidden addition. He supposed that Allison no longer had the time to sew these days, but now that he thought about it, he did not recall ever seeing her bleed amongst Kirkwall's nobility. _It couldn't be because of me, could it?_ The troubling thought came to him unbidden and he quickly shoved it away. The last thing he wanted was to cause her distress.

Allison had still not returned, so after he put away his lockpick, Sebastian retrieved his weaponry and went downstairs to wait. He leaned his bow and quiver of arrows against the wall by Hawke's desk next to the stairs for safekeeping. A cool breeze from the entryway reminded him to close the front door. With that done, he returned to the foyer and tended to the fire, catching it just before it completely extinguished. As the flames rose, he spotted a book on the table nearest the fireplace. A closer inspection revealed it was a cookbook from Starkhaven. With an involuntary glance at the door separating him from Allison, Sebastian traced a finger over the ornate embellishments on the cover. It was just like one he had seen in the palace library at home, one that he wished he had gotten to read. The book was old and few copies existed he had been told as he was chased out of the library as a boy. How Hawke had managed to obtain a copy of it was beyond him.

A small scrap of paper stuck out of the top of the cookbook, a few words written in Allison's distinctive scrawl peeking over the edge. Curiosity getting the better of him, Sebastian opened the book to that page. She had made a list of various dishes from Starkhaven. Some were crossed out and all had notes written next to them. He recognized snippets of conversations they had had at assorted social gatherings, casual references to preferred foods and even spices. What appeared to be the finalized menu had been carefully calculated from those notes.

Sebastian was stunned. He had never been treated with such high regard before. Exiled princes and Chantry brothers had little occasion to be catered to in this way. It truly struck him how much trouble Allison had gone to just for him. No wonder she had been too panicked to untangle her handkerchief herself. Everything had been going wrong for her since before he arrived. He wished he knew what to do for her.

The door across the foyer opened behind him. He turned to see Hawke in the doorway, looking drained and pale like she usually did after a battle, but no longer bleeding. Allison had let her hair down in an attempt to conceal her face, but it had the opposite effect, framing her features in golden waves. For a fleeting moment, she bore a resemblance to Andraste herself. The illusion faded when she gave a start upon seeing him. "I'm sorry, Sebastian. I -" Words failed her.

The former brother realized he was staring. "Not to worry. Your chest is all taken care of. Everything seems to be in order and your dress is waiting for you upstairs. Are you all right?"

A flicker of amusement crossed Hawke's face. Odd, she normally only gave that look when he said something that sounded... _Oh._ He blushed, but thankfully, Allison had already turned toward the stairs and did not see. "Nothing I couldn't handle," she assured him, some of her usual battlefield bravado returning to her. "I won't be but a moment!"

True to her word, Hawke appeared at the top of the stairs an almost impossibly short time later. The transformation was marked. The color had returned to her cheeks and her dress complemented every feature, every curve... _With passion'd breath does the darkness creep. It is the whisper in the night, the lie upon your sleep._ Allison's smile had also made a reappearance by the time she reached him at the foot of the stairs. "Let's start over, shall we?" she grinned at him, dropping into an exaggerated curtsy. "Good evening, Prince Vael."

He smiled back and bowed. "Good evening, Lady Hawke."

Sebastian took her extended hand and she escorted him into the dining room. "Thank you, Sebastian," she whispered so softly he could barely be certain he had heard her. He squeezed her hand gently in return. She lingered a moment longer than necessary before making her way to the table to ladle soup.

"Orana had actually wanted to stay and serve, but I still feel a bit strange about having someone do things for me when I can -" Allison yelped in pain as she accidentally tipped Sebastian's bowl, soaking her left hand before righting it. "Andraste's ass, I just _had_ to say that, didn't I?" She managed to set down the bowl she was carrying and grabbed her napkin to clean off her hand. Sebastian had never seen her distressed to this point before. "I should have expected it, really," she said, unshed tears in her eyes. "There's simply no starting over, is there? I'm sorry, this was a terrible idea. I'm sorry for wasting your -" 

Hawke broke off mid-sentence, finally realizing that he had taken the napkin from her and was examining the burn. "It doesn't look too bad. Water should help, if you can't heal it yet." He did not know how long it would take for her healing magic to return to her after a nosebleed that had not been stopped by magic or if there was any difference at all, but he did not know how else to calm her other than by reminding her what her options were. Allison still looked lost. It was incredible how adaptable she was in all other situations, but when it came to anything formal that did not involve the death of darkspawn, she could not. Sebastian lightly kissed her burned hand before releasing it. "So am I to understand that you cooked tonight's meal, Lady Hawke?"

Allison grinned wryly, cradling her injury. "Thank you so much for not asking if I had a hand in it," she quipped. "I did, with Orana's help. But before I elaborate, allow me just one more moment..." She turned to go upstairs, either to get water for her hand or heal her hand out of his sight. Sebastian caught her giving one of her true, genuine smiles before she was completely facing away. Apparently thinking he could not see, she pressed the back of her hand to her lips and kissed the spot he had moments before. _Andraste's grace_ , he thought as his face grew hot for what he doubted would be the final time that night. He would be lucky if he would get to leave the Chantry at all tomorrow with all of the praying he was going to have to do after this. _Although..._ Sebastian glanced at Hawke, who was just ascending the stairs. _It will be worth everything in the end._


End file.
